Improvement in fruit-gatherers



M. SMITH. Fruit-Gatherer.

N0.l66,418 Patented Aug .3,l875

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WITNESSES INVENYTOR' 4 ATTORNEY$ VBJETERBTYROTO-UTYQOGRAPHER,WASHINGTON. D C.

MINOR SMITH, OF GAYUTAVILLE, NEW YORK.

IMPROVEMENT IN FRUlT-GATHERERS.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 166,418, dated August3, 1875; application filed March 20,1875

To all whom it may concern Be it known that l, MINOR SMITH, of(layutaville, in the county of Schuyler and State of New York, haveinvented a new and valuable Improvement in Fruit-Gatherers and I dohereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exactdescription of the construction and operation ot'the same, referencebeing had to the annexed drawings, making a part of this specification,and to the letters and figures of reference marked thereon.

Figure 1 of the drawing is a representation of a plan view of myfruit-gatherer, and Fig. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view of the same.

This invention has relation to devices for gathering apples and otherfruits which grow on trees; and the nature of my invention consists in anovel mode of constructing and operating the movablejaw which plucks thefruit, as will be hereinafter explained.

In the annexed drawings, A designates the staff of the device, which maybe of any suitable length. To the upper end of this staff a jaw, B, isrigidly secured, which jaw is nearly a complete circle, and it is madeof strap-iron, with a long shank, C. To the back of thejaw and its shankabag, D, is attached, into which the fruit falls as it is plucked fromthe tree. F designates the movable jaw, which, in form, is obcordate,and which is made of one piece of wire, the ends of which are pivoted atthe angles of the jaw B, as shown in Fig. 1. To

the tongue at of the jaw E a spring, b, and a rope, 0, are attached. Thespring I) is secured to a cross-bar, (l, of the shank O, and the rope 0passes over a pulley, e, on a cross-bar, (1, through this bar and thebar (1, and extends down to the hand of the operator. The spring 1) actsto open the jaw E, and the rope c is used for closing this jaw.

It will be observed that the rubber spring 1) passes through the staplein the cross-bar cl, and that the tension o fthe spring may be varied atpleasure, to regulate the compressing force of the movable jaws. I amaware that fixed and movable jaws of the same form have heretofore beenemployed in connection with a pull-cord, as shown in Letters Patentgranted to I. Towers, dated September 24., 1867, numbered 69,144. Itherefore lay no claim to such invention.

What I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

In a fruit-tucker, the combination of the circular fixed jaw B, having along shank, O, the bag D attached thereto, the movable jaw E, ofobcordate form, the ends of which are pivoted at the angles of the fixedjaw B, the adjustable spring I), operating-rope 0, crossbar (1, )rovidedwith grooved pulley e, and the stapled cross-bar cl, substantially asdescribed, and for the purpose set forth.

In testimony that I claim the above I have hereunto subscribed my namein the presence of two witnesses.

MINOR SMITH.

Witnesses:

J. W. SMITH, E.-B. STULL.

